International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5: 175-192.

© 2007, Senate Hall Academic Publishing.

Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset:

Lessons from Dead Poets Society
Heidi M. Neck
Babson College

Virginia W. Gerde
Duquesne University

Christopher P. Neck
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

Abstract. Film captures the complexity of issues, of possibilities and of interactions among diverse
people. It can be very effective in the classroom because it draws students into the situation and
provides them with an engaging opportunity to grapple with concepts and theories. Building off of
the work of van Gelderen and Verduyn (2003), we describe how Dead Poets Society, a non-business
film, can be used with entrepreneurship students to facilitate a discussion on entrepreneurial
thinking and behavior – the entrepreneurial mindset. We highlight eight lessons for entrepreneurs
that emerge from viewing a series of film clips. Alternative pedagogical uses for the film are also
discussed.

Keywords: pedagogy, film, movie, entrepreneurial mindset, entrepreneurial behavior.

1. Introduction

Multi-talented Robin Williams delivers a brilliant performance in one of

Hollywood’s most compelling and thought-provoking motion pictures. Williams
portrays passionate English professor John Keating, who, in an age of crew cuts,
sport coats and cheerless conformity, inspires his students to live life to the
fullest, exclaiming… “Carpe Diem, lads! Seize the day. Make your lives
extraordinary!” The charismatic teacher’s emotionally charged challenge is met
by his students with irrepressible enthusiasm – changing their lives forever.

(Dead Poets Society Promotion, Touchstone Pictures)

How entrepreneurship educators teach should mirror what they teach; thus
process and content collide to create a unique, perhaps entrepreneurial, classroom
environment. The entrepreneurship classroom represents a culture of creativity,
imagination, calculated risk taking, opportunity identification, rigorous analysis,
spirited debate, and thoughtful planning. Above all an entrepreneurship classroom
demands a teaching perspective that avows diversity in delivery methods through
creative and innovative approaches to give students multiple lenses in which to

© 2007, Senate Hall Academic Publishing. All Rights Reserved. Not for inter library loan.
176 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

view the world. It is the breadth and depth of experiences that qualify
entrepreneurs to identify opportunities in the environment that others do not or
can not see (Fiet, 2001a, 2001b; Nixon, Bishop, Clouse, & Kemelgor, 2006).
While the body of knowledge related to entrepreneurship as a scholarly field
seeking to inform practice continues to grow and flourish, our knowledge related
to entrepreneurship education is limited – at least from a publishing perspective.
However, started in 2002, the International Journal of Entrepreneurship
Education (IJEE), has published a significant number of articles related
specifically to entrepreneurship education. Articles have informed us of the state
of entrepreneurship education (Solomon, Duffy, & Tarabishy, 2002) overarching
teaching frameworks (Alberti, Sciascia & Poli, 2005), and specific cultural
perspectives (Koch, 2003; Pittaway & Hannon, 2006). The IJEE has been a leader
in publishing interesting entrepreneurship teaching cases (c.f. Laffey, 2005;
Warren & Stephens, 2003; DeMartino, 2003; Pansing, Hagan, Cockrum, &
Osborne 2004).
Moreover, filling a great gap in the literature, some authors have expanded
our teaching repertoire and toolbox to help increase our innovativeness and
effectiveness as educators in a unique business discipline. For example, Verduyn
& Jansen (2005) use entrepreneurial biographies to facilitate building the
entrepreneurial thinking skills of students. Kent & Anderson (2003) call for
concepts related to social capital and social entrepreneurship to be added to
curricula. Lerner (2003) opens up his venture capital course to a greater public.
Nixon et al., (2006) use Fiet’s (2002) notion of systematic search and discovery
to create a powerful pedagogy to help students identify venture ideas. But it is van
Gelderen & Verduyn’s (2003) article on the use of feature films in
entrepreneurship education that most aligns with the contribution of this paper.
While van Gelderen & Verduyn used a series of films to illustrate entrepreneurial
activities, we use one non-business film to help students understand the role and
importance of an entrepreneurial mindset.
The use of film provides a rich backdrop from which to view the world of
entrepreneurship allowing the student to be analytical and introspective – both of
which are important in an entrepreneurship classroom where a career path in
entrepreneurship often blurs the professional and personal sides of life. As a
result, the more we can show the entrepreneurial mindset through non-business
examples, students can see the pervasive nature of entrepreneurial thinking and
the challenges related to separating life path and career path. More traditional
pedagogies, such as case studies, cannot adequately portray this complex and real
challenge in such an intense and vivid way as can film. This paper describes how
on one particular movie, Dead Poets Society, can be used in entrepreneurship
courses to illustrate and facilitate a discussion on entrepreneurial thinking and
behavior – the entrepreneurial mindset.
We begin with a brief discussion of various perspectives on teaching
entrepreneurship and then the use of film as a pedagogical tool. After a summary
of the film Dead Poets Society, we describe how eight lessons for entrepreneurs
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 177

can be taught using the film as part of coursework. Concluding we provide some
advice for alternative uses of the film in the classroom.

2. The “Entrepreneur” in Entrepreneurship Education

We and others (e.g., Gartner, 1989; Timmons, 1994) posit that teaching
entrepreneurship should focus on what the entrepreneur does rather than who the
entrepreneur is. From the inception of the field in the 1960s, much research has
been conducted on the traits of entrepreneurs (e.g., DeCarlo & Lyons, 1979;
McClelland & Winter, 1969; Miner, 1996). The trait approach, however,
produced a set of characteristics that did not distinguish entrepreneurs from other
populations. Later, Gartner (1989) argued that behavioral approaches provided a
stronger foundation to the study of entrepreneurship. The behavioral approach
views the organization as the primary level of analysis, but it is the individual
entrepreneur that participates in a series of activities to create a new venture. Even
from an economic perspective it is the individual entrepreneur (or entrepreneurial
team) that is the creative destroyer moving markets into disequilibrium
(Schumpeter, 1934) or the individual(s) finding inefficiencies in markets yielding
commercial opportunities (Kirzner, 1973). Penrose (1959) further explained that
entrepreneurs create their own productive opportunity – all of the productive
possibilities an entrepreneur can see and take advantage of. The productive
opportunity of a firm can be seen as both objective and subjective. While the
objective productive opportunity is limited by what the firm is able to achieve, the
subjective opportunity is limited only by the imagination of the founders
(Penrose, 1959).
Whether one approaches entrepreneurship from a trait, behavioral, or
economic perspective the entrepreneur takes center stage. As a result,
entrepreneurship education has followed suit with a focus on building the
entrepreneurial competencies of individuals (Fiet, 2001a). Alberti, Sciascia, and
Poli (2005) identified eight objectives of entrepreneurship education, which we
feel can be parsimoniously categorized as objectives relating to (1) competency
building, (2) operating in entrepreneurial environments, and (3) understanding
the entrepreneur role and mindset. Each grouping cites the importance of the
individual with respect to the skills, actions, and cognitions respectively.
The focus on the individual entrepreneur in an academic setting tends to make
students feel like they have to fit into a preset mold. The stereotypical view of
entrepreneur as hero, risk-taker, adventurer, iconoclast, or maverick can be
intimidating to those students that have a desire to study entrepreneurship but fear
unable to look or act the part. Given the diversity of students enrolling in
entrepreneurship classes across business and non-business disciplines,
entrepreneurship education should first emphasize and unleash mindset, which of
course should be followed by skill building and action. But it is the mindset that
is a necessary antecedent of action. Therefore this paper focuses on the use of
178 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

film to help students understand and begin to cultivate their own entrepreneurial
mindset. Before we discuss the specifics of Dead Poets Society and its uses in the
classroom, we next address the use of film in an education setting.

3. The Use of Film as a Pedagogical Tool

Use of film is an effective pedagogical method for motivating students and

stimulating their imagination. Film is multifaceted, presenting a variety of
characters with different beliefs and desires and behaviors. In conjunction with
standard texts, cases, and experiential exercises, film provides another medium by
which to describe, analyze, illustrate and teach concepts. The benefits of using
film in the classroom include increased students’ understanding, motivation, and
retention.
Advantages of the use of film in the classroom have been detailed and
presented in several articles (Gerde, Shepard, & Goldsby, 1996; Kennedy &
Lawton, 1992). First, because of the complexity and the intense context of film,
students have to take several perspectives into account, not just the bottom-line
mentality that so often accompanies a case discussion. Not only are the interests
of the organization taken into account, also the interests of the decision-makers
and those affected by the decisions. Kennedy and Lawton write: “…our students
will see the effects of compassion, ruthlessness, and sensitivity; stories will
stimulate their experience…” (1992, p. 190). Second, film can stimulate the moral
imagination of students. Film can penetrate deeply and pervasively into the way
we think about the needs of others and about our place in the lives of others.
Robert Coles, renowned Harvard professor and psychiatrist, writes of the capacity
of a play, novel, short story, or film to “…work its way well into one’s thinking
life, yes, but also one’s reveries or idle thoughts, even one’s moods and dreams”
(Coles, 1989, p. 204). Third, in the chaotic world of entrepreneurship, film may
help students see alternative behaviors or options and “to expand their scope of
analysis” (Garaventa, 1998, p. 535). Finally, film is often well-received by
students; Gerde et al. stated that “Students, employees, managers, and the public
can relate to movies because film is an integral part of Western culture” (1996, p.
201).
The integration of business education and film has increased significantly
over the last twenty years. Examples of such a marriage of teaching and film
include Management Live: The Video Book (Marx, Jick, & Frost, 1991), a study
in dialogue (McCambridge, 2003), analysis of social institutions (Scherer &
Baker, 1999) and the use of film in classrooms as a narrative pedagogical tool
(Bumpus, 2005; Gioia & Brass, 1985; Huczynski & Buchanan, 2004; Mallinger
& Rossy, 2003). Film has been used to teach key concepts in management, from
organizational behavior to leadership and power to business ethics (Baker, 1993;
Champoux, 2006; Gerde, Shepard, & Goldsby, 1996; Harrington & Griffin, 1990;
Kennedy & Lawton, 1992; Michaelsen & Schultheiss, 1987; Porter & McKibben,
1988; Serey, 1992; Stillman II, 2006).
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 179

van Gelderen and Verduyn (2003) introduced the concept of using feature
films as a part of entrepreneurship education. The authors discussed how seven
different films (The Van, Rent-a-Friend, Big Night, Tucker, The Associate, The
Fully Monty, and Startup.com) were used in their “Entrepreneurship in the
Cinema” course to illustrate entrepreneurial activities such as introducing a new
product to the market, starting a new company, saving a failing company, and
working in a family enterprise. Through illustrating these activities in film, van
Gelderen and Verduyn were able to enrich the class discussion and encourage
self-assessment. Not only could students visualize entrepreneurial action but they
also experienced “emotions, social interactions, and moral dilemmas experienced
by the main character” (p. 587). The authors give a thorough description of these
films, the entrepreneurial components, and associated assignments used in the
course. However, in choosing the seven movies among thousands, van Gelderen
and Verduyn (2003) purposely excluded films that were not directly related to
business and stated: “Movies depicting an entrepreneurial spirit (risk-taking,
innovative, proactive behavior) without direct reference to starting or running a
business were excluded (e.g. October Sky, Dead Poets Society)” (p. 588).
Building off of the work of van Gelderen and Verduyn (2003), we fill a gap in the
film as entrepreneurship pedagogy literature by describing how Dead Poets
Society, a non-business film, can be used to help teach and unleash the
entrepreneurial mindset of students.
We next provide a brief summary of the film Dead Poets Society followed by
a more detailed discussions of the eight lessons for entrepreneurs. These lessons
are not exhaustive – indeed the elements of the film provide a rich environment
for a multitude of discussion paths. Yet we focus on one particular path – a
discussion of the entrepreneurial mindset.

4. Dead Poets Society: An Overview

Cross and Mitchell (1995) summarize the powerful characterization of the film:
“The entire film is a mirror constantly reflecting character motivation. All the
main characters are well developed, displaying several personality traits, some of
which may contradict each other” (p. 84-85). The film’s protagonist is Mr.
Keating, a newly hired teacher at Wellton, an all-male college preparatory high
school where Keating himself graduated many years prior. As a teacher Keating
challenges the school structure known for its tradition and academic rigor. The
boys are expected to become professionals and lead the life their parents directed.
Conformity, caution and unchanging tradition are emphasized. Keating attempts
to use the medium of an English class to facilitate not only the boys’ knowledge
of poetry but also the self-directional skills necessary to succeed in life (Neck &
Manz, 1996). As one may expect, Keating’s ideology was dissimilar than those
of the faculty, which caused friction but also heavily influenced the boys’
thinking and behavior.
180 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

A particular group of boys impacted the most by the teachings of Keating, but
who felt stifled by the rigid teachings and ideals of the school, recreated the Dead
Poets Society, a society once led by Keating when he was a student at Wellton.
These boys ultimately found their souls and passions when they immersed
themselves in the words carpe diem, seize the day. These words became action,
and for these boys, their lives were forever changed.
With some imagination many entrepreneurial lessons can be found in Dead
Poets Society, but we highlight eight specific lessons that can emerge through an
engaging discussion using specific clips from the film. Many behavioral attributes
of entrepreneurs (c.f. Ryles 1963; Bird 1989) can be seen in these lessons –
creativity, innovation, flexibility, autonomy, self-direction, and self-expression.
In combination with academic texts, case studies, experiential exercises, and
other pedagogy, Dead Poets Society can explicate entrepreneurial concepts
particularly as they relate to the “fuzzy” concept of entrepreneurial mindset. Next,
we discuss the eight lessons for entrepreneurs (see Table 1) and how these are
derived from the film.

Table 1: Dead Poets Society’s Eight Lessons for Entrepreneurs

1 Conformity stifles creativity.

2 Don’t follow the leader.
3 Find your passion and bring it to life.
4 Make your life extraordinary.
5 Creativity can be unleashed – we all have it.
6 Looking at situations from different perspectives will allow you to see what others do not.
7 Carpe Diem (Seize the day).
8 There is a time for daring and a time for caution. The entrepreneur knows the difference.

5. Eight Lessons for Entrepreneurs

The eight lesson format is designed for using a series of six clips of varying
lengths during one 90 minute class session. Table 2 identifies these clips by
giving a scene description in addition to clip length, discussion remarks, and
corresponding entrepreneurial lesson(s) as numbered in table 1. The lessons
discussed below should be the output of a class discussion. The instructor’s role
is to guide the student discussion in such a way that the students ultimately derive
these lessons on their own. The eight lessons presented in table 1 are to be used
as a summation at the end if the film if used in the way presented in Table 2. The
explanation of each lesson that follows here represents possible areas of
discussion. Though the lessons remain consistent evidence of each lesson may
vary depending on the type of student involved in the discussion or clips used in
the class. Our insights are based on actual classroom discussions when using the
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 181

clips in a general entrepreneurship course. It was not our intent to derive or

support each lesson using the academic literatures; we simply wanted to
encourage dialogue around the entrepreneurship mindset at the beginning of the
course and give students the opportunity to think about entrepreneurship from a
non-business, personal perspective. Furthermore, we acknowledge that there are
alternative uses for the film and we discuss these in a later section; however, we
focus now on the eight lesson format.

Table 2: Scene Descriptions for the Eight-Lesson Format

Clip # Clip Description Approximate Corresponding Remarks and Possible Discussion Questions
Clip Length Entrepreneuria
l Lesson

1 At the end of the opening credits 7 minutes
as the headmaster addresses the
audience “Ladies & Gentlemen”
until the scene of the first bells of
the semester and the flock of
geese.
Lesson 1 Clip sets the stage and tone of the movie.
Conformity, tradition, and lack of creativity are
evident. Opening discussion questions:
Describe what you are seeing in this clip? Does
what you see inhibit or enable entrepreneurial
thinking? Why?

2 From the opening bells of the 7 minutes
semester and geese flying
(previous clip end) through
Keating’s first class and ending
with the students walking out of
the classroom discussing
Keating’s class
Lessons 3, 4, 7 Clip introduces many issues but the emphasis
should be on creativity, passion, creating a life
of impact, and “carpe diem.” Discussion
questions: Is Keating an entrepreneur? What
behaviors indicate that he is (or is not) an
entrepreneur? What do you think Keating is
thinking?

3 Keating’s classes when he has 2 minutes
students stand on top of his desk
and then proceed to jump off.
Lesson 6 Clip begins to show how Keating is encouraging
his students to view situations from a different
perspective and keep their eyes open for new
opportunities. Discussion questions: How does
this scene relate to entrepreneurship? How can
you begin to see the world from a different
perspective?

4 Students are reciting their 4 minutes
original poems in class. Todd did
not complete the assignment but
Keating helps him create an
improvisational poem.
Lessons 4, 5 Clip emphasizes how creativity can be
unleashed and that fear is the primary factor
limiting our ability to be creative. Every human
has the ability to be creative in their own unique
ways; this uniqueness can be the source of new
ideas. Discussion questions: How would you
describe Todd before and after the poem? Can
we learn anything about creativity from this
clip? What role does creativity play in
entrepreneurship?

5 From the scene of Keating’s class 4 minutes
when they are n the courtyard
walking in a circle through the
scene where Todd throws his
desk set off the roof.
Lessons 1, 2, 3, 6 Clips emphasizes that it’s human nature to
follow the leader and that many times we don’t
even realize we’re following. Positive things
often result from stepping away from the pack.
Discussion questions: How does this clip relate
to entrepreneurship? Does an entrepreneur
always need to lead? Why or why not?

6 From the scene where Dalton 6 minutes
receives a phone call from God
during an assembly through the
scene where Keating reminds the
students that there are times for
caution. (Note: The scene in the
middle of the clip on punishment
may be excluded.)
Lessons 2, 8 Clip shows a turning point in the film when the
boys may have gone a little too far. Tradition
and conformity seem to be winning. Not all
entrepreneurial attempts are successful but the
learning from the attempt can be powerful. By
this point in the class the students recognize the
line of inquiry and the directed nature of the
instructor’s questions. As a result, simply ask:
What do you think?
182 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

Lesson 1: Conformity stifles creativity.

Life at Wellton revolved around the four pillars of tradition, honor, discipline, and
excellence. Though philosophically admirable, these pillars, when bounded by
conformity in thought, teaching, and action, can tended to limit growth and stifle
creativity. For example, the Greek language was taught by repetition rather than
by application (clip 1). Additionally, prior to Keating’s arrival poetry was taught
by understanding the beat or pentameter rather than understanding what is felt by
the poet when such words are written. Students living in Wellton’s structured
environment knew only one way, and success at Wellton became a direct path to
Yale or Harvard. Tradition in school and family dictated a student’s fate without
any regard to that individual’s talent, skill, or passion.
The Wellton environment is characteristic of many large corporations where
policy and process dictate behavior and action. The environment is safe and
protected where conformity is encouraged for political purposes, risk is
discouraged for unknown designs, and creativity is often inhibited by a traditional
culture. The entrepreneur challenges this type of environment and creates a
venture grounded in new thinking, creativity, and a drive to achieve beyond the
expectations of the norm. Sexton and Bowman (1996) found that conformity was
negatively related to entrepreneurs. Ryle (1963) and Raven (1983) also support
the view that successful entrepreneurs resist conformity and embrace change to
allow for innovation and opportunities others may not see. As a result
entrepreneurs are more likely to have high individualism (McGrath, MacMillan,
& Scheinberg, 1992) while also understanding associated risks.
The opening scenes of Dead Poets Society emphasize conformity, from the
flock of geese flying in formation to the uniformity of the students as they move
to the chapel and recite the ideals of Wellton (clip 1). There is no room for
creativity; indeed, the institutional culture promotes conformity and obedience of
the rules as a way to maintain control of the student body, minimize uncertainty,
and produce good citizens that conform to society’s standards. Keating, as an
example for the students, is expected to conform to the time-honored tradition of
recitation and conservative standards of conduct in the classroom. Instead,
Keating has the students rip out the Introduction of their poetry text (clip 1), stand
on the desk to recite poetry (clip 3), and other kinesthetic ways of learning (clip
5) – these methods of teaching are unheard of at Wellton. Keating shows his class
through his teaching style that remaining in a predetermined comfort zone may
stifle or prevent creative thought and expression.

Lesson 2: Don’t follow the leader.

Conformity not only limits creativity, but it also creates a group of followers. The
courtyard scene of the students walking is a prime example of individuals
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 183

following a leader only to conform. When instructed to walk around the

courtyard, the students walked in unison and in a circle (clip 5). At first, the boys
felt following was the easiest path or that following was the expected norm.
Following was a defense mechanism resulting from the fear of “stepping out of
the box.” Then each student was told to walk his own way and along his own path.
The students tried to find their own gait and course, trying not to follow the
leader. Dalton, one of the students, took these first two lessons to heart and chose
not to walk at all. In always following the leader, an individual does not know or
even reach his or her full potential; the unknown abilities and self are not brought
to fruition.
It is evident that entrepreneurs do not always follow the leader. Entrepreneurs
step out of the box and embark on a different path and journey. Some leave out
of survival (corporate restructuring, layoff) while others leave to foster their
individual potential (the desire to be an entrepreneur). Whatever the reason,
entrepreneurs bring the words of Robert Frost (as quoted in the film) to life. “Two
roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, and that has
made all of the difference.” Entrepreneurs tend to prefer working alone versus
working with or for others, and they tend to prefer having no hierarchy (Lau &
Chan, 1994). Autonomy and self-achievement are also important attributes of
entrepreneurs (Donaldson, 1985; Sexton and Bowman, 1986; Smith & Miner,
1984).
Throughout the film, Keating and some of the students choose not to follow
the leaders. Realistically, some of the students also choose to follow the leader
and to conform, and the film addresses both the positive aspects of ‘breaking out
of the mold’ and the negative aspects of risk taking (examples ranged from the
threat of expulsion to a teenage suicide).

Lesson 3: Find your passion and bring it to life.

The first day of class, Keating takes the boys to the ‘Hall of Fame’ where pictures
of previous classes and their achievements are displayed (clip 2). He asks that
they look at these alumni and see the person, who, just like they do, have hopes
and fears and passions. What is their passion, he asks. What will make their life
worthwhile? Writing their own poems is a start at self-awareness and their own
passions (clip 4). The secret meetings of the Dead Poets Society are also an
expression of what the boys are interested in – they are trying to find out who they
are outside the context of the institutions of school and family.
In the face of challenge, what do you do? Individuals that fly rather than fight
in times of confrontation are indifferent. Conversely, individuals that push ideas
to the limit and fight to hold their ground are passionate about what they do. For
example, Neil Perry (a student) asked Mr. Keating why he tolerated Wellton, Mr.
Keating’s response was, “I love teaching.” At the other extreme, an individual
184 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

may find his passion, but finds it cannot be acted upon. In the case of Neil Perry,
acting became his passion that was prohibited by his father. The result was
suicide. Passion must be brought to life. If you kill the passion, you may kill the
person behind the passion.
Entrepreneurs are passionate about what they do. As a result, new venture
creation and growth is a lifestyle. Profit is very rarely the motive; rather, an
entrepreneur’s passion can be found in a product, a service, or the drive and
challenge to do something new and different. Confidence and motivation are tied
to the entrepreneur’s passion. Garavan and O’Cinneide (1994) allude to this
passion when they entreat the entrepreneur to know the “deeper aspects of self,
emotions and values” as well as “encouraging the use of feelings, attitudes, and
values outside of information.”
The concept of passion permeates entrepreneurship and most students,
especially undergraduates, have difficulty understanding and/or finding their
passion. Even the courtyard scene (clip 5) where students are encouraged to walk
in their own unique way represents the beginning of Mr. Keating helping students
to think about their unique way of being and knowing. As such entrepreneurship
is an introspective process and a classroom should encourage self-reflection in
search of passion.

Lesson 4: Make your life extraordinary.

Keating seems to make a direct correlation between passion and life impact (clips
2 and 4). He states (clip 2), “Life is a powerful play and you may contribute a
verse. What will your verse be?” All individuals have a part in life’s play;
furthermore, each person has complete control over his part size. During the scene
where students must recite their original programs (clip 4) one student
sarcastically delivers a poem about a cat sitting on a hat. After a roar of laughter
from the class, Keating quickly retorts that there is nothing wrong with simplicity
as long as it is not ordinary.
Each individual has a unique knowledge base that can be used to identify
opportunities that others cannot or do not recognize (Fiet, 2002). Keating would
likely argue that we must help our students identify and understand this unique
knowledge pool in order to guide students along their extraordinary path.

Lesson 5: Creativity can be unleashed – we all have it.

Student creativity is unleashed initially by Mr. Keating when he assigns students

to create and read aloud a piece of original poetry (clip 4). Perhaps one of the more
dramatic scenes, Mr. Keating asks Todd Andersen to read his poem aloud;
however, Todd did not complete the assignment mostly due to his low self-
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 185

confidence and fear of embarrassment in front of his peers. As a result Todd could
not free himself to be creative. The creativity was there waiting only to be
unleashed by Mr. Keating.
Fear is often cited as the primary emotional roadblock to creativity (Gurteen,
1998; Michalko, 1991; Hall, 2001) and creativity is central to entrepreneurship.
Innovativeness and adaptability are problem solving outcomes for entrepreneurs
(Begley & Boyd, 1987; Donaldson, 1985; McClelland, 1987; Reilly & DiAngelo,
1987; Schumpeter, 1934). Even a study of British entrepreneurs found that the
degree of risk taking and innovation are related to success (Cox & Jennings,
1995). Furthermore self efficacy is considered an enabler of entrepreneurial
activity (Boyd & Vozikis, 1994). Self efficacy is the belief in one’s capability to
do something such as start a new venture (Gist, 1987; Bandura, 1977).
Throughout the film it is evident that Keating is encouraging students to face their
fears, realize what they are capable of doing and have the confidence to act on
their passions.

Lesson 6: Looking at situations from different perspectives will allow you to see
what others cannot.

Mr. Keating instructed his students to stand on top of the desk and look around
the classroom, and this exercise proved a very valuable lesson in perception (clip
3). Keating’s point was that we must constantly look at things in different ways.
From an entrepreneurial perspective, a opportunity exists when an individual sees
something that others do not. It is at this point that the light goes on and new
venture creation begins. Additionally, entrepreneurs are not bounded by
corporate, bounded rationality. Rather, they are encouraged, and many times
forced, to look at situations or problems and implement creative solutions.
Detecting opportunities that others may not see is characteristic of
entrepreneurs. They are able to see situations from a different perspective or adapt
to a changing environment (Reilly & DiAngelo, 1987). Lau and Chan (1994)
characterize entrepreneurs, in general, as preferring innovation, preferring
change, exploiting opportunities, and more likely to take risks and tolerance
uncertainty. These elements can lead one to see what others may not; one is not
constrained by fear and is more likely to see opportunities. This film encourages
students to view situations through a variety of perspectives and to think for
themselves.

Lesson 7: Carpe Diem.

Lessons 7 may be considered the “capstone” lesson, with Lesson 8 being a caveat.
Mr. Keating says, “Don’t wait until it’s too late to realize your potential. To know
186 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

you have lived with meaning, to know who have existed with purpose, and to
know you brought life to your passions…then you can say, ‘Yes, I seized the
day’.” Perhaps carpe diem is a philosophy of entrepreneurs. Serey (1992) writing
on the use of film in management education states, “Carpe diem is not so much
about winning the larger prizes in life, as it is about owning up to quiet fears and
anxieties” (p. 380). The successful entrepreneur must overcome not only
institutional obstacles and societal pressures, but also his or her own individual
fears and anxieties. Thus creativity as explored is lesson 6 may be necessary
antecedent of this lesson.

Lesson 8: There is a time for daring and a time for caution. The wise entrepreneur
knows the difference.

Dalton (a student) pretended to receive a telephone call from God in the presence
of the headmaster (clip 6). Afterwards, Mr. Keating approached Dalton and
stated, “There is a time for daring and a time for caution; the wise man knows the
difference.”
This is an important lesson for students of entrepreneurship. Students often
believe the myth that entrepreneurs are extreme risk takers that act rather than
plan, or do rather than think. On the contrary, entrepreneurs are superior learners
that understand the importance of knowledge and timing (Timmons and Spinelli,
2007). Risk is based on perception and an experienced entrepreneur understands
how to balance his own risk taking propensity with the external environment that
can signal how or when to act (Petrakis, 2005; van Gelderen, Thurik, & Bosma,
2005).
Lesson 8 encourages students to consider the role of experience and acquiring
the necessary knowledge base before embarking on an entrepreneurial path.
Similarly students can be encouraged to use their existing knowledge based on
previous experiences to identify new opportunities (Nixon et al., 2007) but use
caution when exploring in completely unknown territories.

6. Alternative Uses of Dead Poets Society in the Classroom

The eight lesson format is only one of many ways that Dead Poets Society can be
used in an entrepreneurship course. The authors of this paper have utilized the
film in various manners; all yielding productive results. From informal student
feedback the authors have learned that the film’s examples have been retained by
the student even after the course. Comments during class and afterwards indicate
students remember the lessons and can apply the concepts in other situations.
Serey (1992) used the film to illustrate general management topics and reported
“…one student offered the opinion that the entire film is metaphor for
organizations and their role in enforcing the status quo” (p. 379). Perhaps Dead
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 187

Poets Society is a case study in what entrepreneurial thinking is not as much as

what entrepreneurial thinking is. Regardless, students will be impacted by the
story. Given the age of the film (1989) the story will be a new story to most
undergraduate students and many graduate students. Students will often approach
the instructor after class to discuss further the film or to ask for more information
about the situation. When students become this active in discussions, both in the
classroom and in the hallways, they are certainly applying and learning the
concepts for more than just an examination grade. We expand on this by
identifying several methods beyond the eight lesson format for incorporating
Dead Poets Society into an entrepreneurship course.
One method is to assign viewing of the film outside of class (towards the end
of the semester) and have the students turn in a written report on how the movie
illustrated key entrepreneurial concepts discussed in class during the course
(some of the lessons they discover from the movie may be similar to those
discussed above). This method allows the student to view the entire film, to
contemplate, and to make connections with the material covered in the course.
Such an assignment allows for independent assessment of learning and synthesis
of course concepts and materials, and encourages students to individually express
their reactions to the film and what they are likely to take with them after the
course. One drawback of this method is that other students do not necessarily
benefit from each other’s analyses and insights. This can be attended to by posting
ungraded papers online for other students to review. One of the authors has used
this technique for small groups to read and discuss each others’ papers to see what
the differences are in the students’ perceptions, consideration, and application of
the concepts.
An alternative method is for the instructor to show a portion of the movie
during class. For a 75-minute class, we suggest beginning with the first scene
after the opening credits when the headmaster says “Ladies and Gentlemen ...”
and continuing through to the scene after the phone call from God where Keating
tells the boys there is a time for risk and a time for caution. Serey (1992) identified
a 50-minute segment if the instructor is limited in time: from the scene near the
beginning of the students filing down the staircase for the first day of class to the
end of the scene where Keating helps Todd overcome his fears and create a poem.
If the class meets again one or two days after the showing, students are better able
to recall the film and specific scenes. If they do not meet to discuss it for several
days, the recall may not be as vivid, but one way to address the delay is to have
the students write out responses to questions about the film in preparation for the
next week’s discussion. For those courses that use online communication tools, a
healthy online discussion can be developed on one or more of the specific seven
lessons. One author has used online discussions of film in class by allowing
students to view the film on their own and then discuss themes in a discussion
board or blog format.
188 Teaching Entrepreneurial Mindset: Lessons from Dead Poets Society

The approach of the instructor to the film can vary from explaining directly
what is seen and conveyed in each scene as a lecture style to a more student-
interactive discussion drawing out what the students saw and their interpretations.
Discussion can be limited to the specific film or students can be asked to identify
other examples in news articles of each lesson. This encourages them to
synthesize the information and apply it in more than one context. Regardless of
method used Dead Poets Society is a nontraditional case study of the
entrepreneurial mindset.

7. Conclusion

Although there are other popular films that explicitly address entrepreneurs (e.g.,
Tucker: The Man and His Dream and Baby Boom), Dead Poets Society has a
decidedly different plot, but it conveys the mindset so valued in entrepreneurs. Its
themes of “conformity versus nonconformity, the power of the imagination, …
and life lived to its fullest” are ones to which our students relate (Cross &
Mitchell, 1995, p. 85).
In short, we feel that using film in the classroom can be a powerful teaching
tool to illustrate a theory or analyze an issue. Film captures the complexity of
issues and possibilities and of the interactions among diverse people. We argue
that it can be very effective in the classroom, because it draws the student into the
situation and provides students with an engaging opportunity to grapple with
concepts and theories in alternative contexts. However, we admit that film is not
the perfect vehicle by which to communicate critical thinking (see McLaren &
Leonardo, 1998); however, it serves to raise these issues for discussion and
exploration in class.
Dead Poets Society is story of passion, challenging the status quo, seizing
opportunities, feeling success and experiencing tragedy. The film allows students
to analyze ideas and situations from different perspectives and experience the
personal journey of entrepreneurship. Finally, the film depicts how challenging
the environment to accept new ideas and using these ideas to improve society is
not a task for the fainthearted. Dead Poets Society is a story of entrepreneurship
and quite powerful in the classroom if one agrees that developing the
entrepreneurial mindset of our students is a primary objective of entrepreneurship
education.
International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education 5 189

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